Now, if we could win to the Eden Tree where the Four Great Rivers flow,
And the Wreath of Eve is red on the turf as she left it long ago,
And if we could come when the sentry slept and softly scurry through,
By the favour of God we might know as much — as our father Adam knew!

In The Last Chantey, Kipling wrote:

Then cried the soul of the stout Apostle Paul to God:
‘Once we frapped a ship, and she laboured woundily.
There were fourteen score of these,
And they blessed Thee on their knees,
When they learned Thy Grace and Glory under Malta by the sea!’

President Reagan said, December 13, 1988:

“As I prepare to lay down the mantle of office…I cannot help believe that what Rudyard Kipling said of another time and place is true today for America:

“‘We are at the opening verse of the opening page of the chapter of endless possibilities.’